paul tazewell harriet

They could have purchased the fabric from a neighboring plantation. It goes back to that idea of neutral with pops of color. She’s able to weave through the woods and the river. In ‘Harriet,’ Paul Tazewell Dressed Cynthia Erivo as a Superhero The costume designer used a newly found photograph of Harriet Tubman as inspiration for the looks in … All those things together, she would have been able to find. It was more about an emotional feel for who she had become and how she had realized herself. While we’re doing that, we’re trying to imbue it with the poetry for an audience. Paul Tazewell is a Tony and Emmy Award winning costume designer whose most recent work is featured in the film “Harriet” about Harriet Tubman, the … He strove to ensure that every costume design, in some way, helped advance the story. Tazewell has done opera and also worked on television shows. Viscerally, it felt right for the period and how I saw Harriet. In the film, Tazewell created the look based on historic daguerreotype photos he found. Tazewell felt that the outfits Harriet wears on her quest to free more enslaved people should suggest the stealth nature of her work. When Harriet flees to Philadelphia and begins her life as a free woman, she enters a world of sophisticated fashion, reflected in the suits of William Still (Leslie Odom Jr.), who acclimates Harriet into her new life, and the elegant dresses of Marie Buchanon (Janelle Monáe), a leading black business owner who takes Harriet under her wing. Then she recreates herself as this superhuman woman. They were sewing their own clothes. For the last two decades, costume designer Paul Tazewell has been conquering Broadway. “Harriet was one of the most extensive, lengthy trips that I have done,” says Tazewell, “Having worked on Broadway and on different period productions, I’m used to building them. How would she feel in this?’” she says. December 26, 2019 9:18am On Kasi Lemmons’ Harriet, Paul Tazewell was tasked with designing costumes for slave-turned-abolitionist Harriet … Costume designer Paul Tazewell won a Tony Award for dressing Alexander Hamilton and his fellow Founding Fathers in their 18th-century garbs … Director of Photography John Toll and Costume Designer Paul Tazewell shoot and costume the film in various shades of blue. “We built a lot. She’s a woman who is pulling elements that are both female and male and suitable for doing the deed at hand. From a modern eye, it needs to be part of the appeal. Harriet is a 2019 American biographical film directed by Kasi Lemmons, who also wrote the screenplay with Gregory Allen Howard.It stars Cynthia Erivo as abolitionist Harriet Tubman, with Leslie Odom Jr., Joe Alwyn, and Janelle Monáe in supporting roles.. A biography about Harriet Tubman had been in the works for years, with several actresses, including Viola Davis, rumored to star. Everything that she stood for changed my life, as well as the lives of so many others.”. Harriet had two different looks when she goes on her missions to free the enslaved. Costume designer Paul Tazewell talks about his work transforming the actress into freedom fighter Harriet Tubman, with outfits ranging from a blue Union Army uniform to … I made the decision that’s really how we should represent Harriet that we have this very neutral world, and as we move through, the other characters, we should show her in this blue tone. The cliche of masculinity and strength—slave owners initially assume her identity to be a man, isn’t massaged extensively here. Some of that was because we needed to have the amount of yardage that we were able to get because there were so many duplicates of that dress. For many, Harriet Tubman’s journey is one we’re taught about in school. The Library of Congress’ Prints and Photographs collection, in particular, yielded a wealth of information — most notably, photos of the plantations featuring group shots of the enslaved. For the big screen, Tazewell just wrapped Steven Spielberg's much-anticipated "Westside Story" and "Harriet," the Harriet Tubman biopic, starring … We start with that with a red headwrap and that pop of color. But it is also for function and wear and tear. In ‘Harriet,’ Paul Tazewell Dressed Cynthia Erivo as a Superhero The costume designer used a newly found photograph of Harriet Tubman as inspiration for the looks in the new Kasi Lemmons movie. Six versions of a green jacket outfit and four of an alternating red costume were created for these scenes. He has designed extensively in the United States and internationally for theatre, dance and opera. For many, Harriet Tubman’s journey is one we’re taught about in school. Now, Tazewell is setting his sights on the film world. She only used a stunt double once.”, Tazewell cites Harriet’s bandit looks as his favorite designs. Fortunately, Tazewell had an advantage to keeping it real. During his research, Tazewell discovered a wealth of photography depicting the clothing he wanted to recreate. Before that, it’s really her power costume. “The daguerreotypes of the period are quite amazing,” he says. He’s been honored with seven Tony nominations, winning in 2016 for Hamilton. After looking at the daguerreotypes of the neutral tone, some had been tinted after they had been taken. In “Harriet,” her athleticism gives weight to the scenes in which she and those she shepherds evade slave catchers.) Household heads and slave owners Gideon Brodess (Joe Alwyn) and his mother Eliza (Jennifer Nettles) needed looks that showed their stature but still suggested their rustic, rural lifestyle. Speaking were film producer Debra Martin Chase, Vanessa Bell Calloway—the actress who played Harriet Tubman’s mother, and Paul Tazewell, the film’s costume designer. Tazewell, a six-time Tony nominee, won the Tony for … Tubman, who lived from 1820 to 1913, was born right after the invention of the camera. That way, you could identify that the slave was from that plantation if they ended up running away. We know she’s a heroine, an abolitionist who led slaves to their freedom via the underground railroad. “We needed a backup if anything were to happen to one. It’s this pastiche of clothing pieces that all put together makes her into this bad-ass woman.”. Cynthia was a trooper. His work can be seen in Kasi Lemmons’ Harriet, the story of slave turned heroine Harriet Tubman. Paul Tazewell, Costume Designer: Hamilton. The slaves were picking the cotton, spinning it and weaving it. His eclectic range of work spans from revivals of such classics as A Streetcar Named Desire, Jesus Christ Superstar, A Raisin in the Sun and Guys and Dolls to newer hits like The Color Purple, In the Heights, Memphis and Ain’t Too Proud. We built about 12 dresses, and we had it at different levels so we could tell the story of her escaping and going through everything that she went through. The first time we see her running through the forest, there’s this great connection to the environment that she’s in and that she’s making her way through. Variety and the Flying V logos are trademarks of Variety Media, LLC. We had to do a lot for Harriet because she was so physical and had to do so many physical feats, like running through mud, crossing rivers,” explains Tazewell. The clothes have to be built to stand that activewear.”. “To be given the opportunity to tell Harriet Tubman’s story is a huge honor. That’s thanks to Cynthia Erivo, who plays her—but it’s also thanks to Paul Tazewell, who dressed her. The hat is broad-rimmed. Paul Tazewell has over twenty-seven years of design experience. The plantation where Harriet was owned wasn’t big enough for them to have that manufacturing system. When you put it together, it looks really powerful and stylish. Motion Picture Association, Inc. It’s the pinnacle of her realizing herself, having gone through a period of being a shapeshifter and master of disguise. She was really quite amazing. From ‘Hamilton’ to ‘Harriet’: Costume designer Paul Tazewell’s creations come to High Point The sheen of the green satin ensemble reflects light under the gallery’s bulbs, quietly drawing attention to itself. I think the film does that and I hope that my work does that as well.”. Plantations were growing cotton. After graduating high school, he initially attended Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY to study fashion design. How would she move in this? Speaking were film producer Debra Martin Chase, Vanessa Bell Calloway—the actress who played Harriet Tubman’s mother, and Paul Tazewell, the film’s costume designer. Since the film is still in theaters in the U.S., I can’t get many photos, but costume designer Paul Tazewell has been doing the media rounds and shared plenty of details about his fine work. Unless you’ve read the books by Kate Clifford Larson or Beverly Lowry, “We didn’t receive the whole story,” says costume designer Paul Tazewell. In this Framing the Scene,  Tazewell breaks down key looks of Harriet’s journey. For more of our Harriet coverage, check out our interview with editor Wyatt Smith. Now, Tazewell is setting his sights on the film world. The fabrics I chose were about function. Paul Tazewell said he took inspiration from daguerreotypes from the 1800s for lead actress Cynthia Erivo’s custom made period costumes for the biopic “Harriet,” but also wanted the clothes to convey her superhero status in both American history and the Black Experience. At the time, that had just become very popular — documenting the slaves on plantations and life on plantations. “I loved that with every new costume comes this extra part of her that you wouldn’t see unless she was in the clothing. Paul most recently designed Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story” (20th Century Fox/Amblin Entertainment) and “Harriet” (Focus Features). “You will follow me,” she says. Harriet hits theaters on November 1, 2019. Her costumes, and those of her fellow enslaved, were kept simple and basic. “I was delighted,” says Tazewell when director Kasi Lemmons, who co-wrote the script with Gregory Allen Howard, approached him to design the costumes for Harriet. In “Harriet,” we see iconic abolitionist Harriet Tubman like we have never seen her before. The last thing we see her in is in the uniform when she was an officer with the Union Army. Paul Tazewell is no stranger to historical period pieces, having won a Tony for his costumes in “Hamilton.” When he joined “ Harriet,” he buried himself in … With the green dress, we tried to establish this growth and it’s also connected to the forest and nature. Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images Framing The Scene: Crafting The Costumes For. With the original look, it’s how I always begin a design, I immersed myself with research. The Emmy and Tony winner also shares how he created storytelling costumes for powerhouse Cynthia Erivo in the Harriet Tubman biopic. The Wiz, Hamilton and Jesus Christ Superstar Live! “They establish her as this impactive, powerful woman fully embracing her heroic, ethnic persona.”, Erivo couldn’t agree more. Vanessa Kirby & Ellen Burstyn on Their Poignant New Film “Pieces of a Woman”, Screenwriter Kata Wéber on Grief and Healing in “Pieces of a Woman”. “I imagine the master…the owner wanted to document how many slaves he actually had — whether for a measure of wealth or power,” he says. “She has nothing, and she goes through a huge journey and her clothing breaks down completely, almost to the point that it’s falling off. And he’s doing it in an epic way with Harriet, the sweeping saga of Harriet Tubman, the legendary 19th-century enslaved-person-turned-abolitionist who, after escaping to freedom, orchestrated the rescue of hundreds of fellow enslaved people. What I was finding were daguerreotypes of the period. https://twitter.com/harrietfilm/status/1153644731928207360?s=21 Bridging the Gap: A look into African American Hair & Makeup for Theatre He believe they helped build an air of mystery around her. “I hope that I was able to visually create a world that was inviting, but acknowledges the fissures of Harriet’s life… the full hardship, and then also the heroic,” says Tazewell. I really love what’s on the poster, it’s what we call her “bandit” look. Credit: Glen Wilson / Focus Features. The coat is an olive-brown. It turned out that most of Harriet’s outfits also needed this durability. “The eyes in those faces and the humanity that resonates out of them, I think that’s where I get my inspiration because my work is based in character, developing different types of characters and making those feel as real as possible.”. 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